All articles copyright 2007 Jeff Coleman
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Are Professional lenses worth the money?
The answer to this question varies greatly depending on your needs. As a Professional photographer, I use top of the line professional lenses. I own a few prosumer lenses which are a better choice for vacations and other occasions where a small compact setup with a wider zoom range is more suitable. Lenses have come a long way in the past 5-6 years. It's hard to even buy a bad lens these days. Some $80 lenses are sharper than others that cost $1,500. Of Course there are other factors to consider such as build quality and low light capabilities. The Low aperture, (typically F2.8) of Professional lenses allow us to have brighter backgrounds with an appealing out of focus area (bokeh).
With the advent of sophisticated computer modeling programs, wonder lenses like the Nikon 18-200VR seem to bend the laws of physics. This lens can do much more than anyone thought possible and it has quickly become one of my favorites. The broad zoom range covers 98% of all photography needs and it is sharp. Sometimes having two camera bodies around my neck with a different professional lens mounted to each is impractical or impossible.
The problem with cheaper lenses is they can not be used in low light situations like a wedding reception. Sure you could use a powerful flash to light up your subject but your background will be pure black. Trust me it's an ugly look that screams amateur.
Most consumer lenses have a minimum F Stop of F3.5 to F5.6. Professional lenses have a constant aperture of F2.8. Now you might be thinking that F3.5 is not much different than F2.8 and you would be right. The problem is that a cheap lens with a variable minimum aperture is only F3.5 at it's widest setting. As soon as you start zooming, the aperture quickly rises to the F5.6 level. Basically your lens has a minimum aperture of F5.6 for most of it's usable range. The only time you will ever see F3.5 is at the widest setting.
Don't get caught up in all of the talk on different photography forums where people endlessly debate test charts. In the real world just about any lens made today will produce beautiful results. If you're not a professional photographer who works in harsh lighting scenarios then save your money and buy a cheaper lens. I suggest you visit a site like B&H photo. They have user reviews of all of their products.
Can a lens be too sharp?
Yes, as a matter of fact it can. Photographs of people are more flattering when they are slightly soft. Only the eyes have to be in sharp focus. While we're on the subject of sharpness... Most digital cameras have a setting in the menu for sharpness. Leave your camera at the default setting, if anything turn the sharpness down. You can always sharpen an image with photoshop later if it needs it. If you set your camera to a higher sharpness setting it will magnify edges and pixelation. If you have any grain in your image it will be magnified into an ugly mess. |
